Key stats
- Vitinha is the ninth player to score a hat-trick in a Champions League match against an English opponent, and the first Portuguese player to do so.
- Tottenham have lost after scoring the opening goal in the Champions League for the first time since 1st October 2019 against Bayern Munich (five games without defeat).
- PSG have scored in their last 11 games in the Champions League, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of 14 games from 15th September 2021 to 2nd November 2022.
Highlights
Analysis
Vitinha starred for PSG and was given a Flashscore rating of 8.6 for his Man of Match performance. Tottenham meanwhile had seven players receive a rating under 6.0.
Match report
Fresh from a North London derby day mauling at the hands of Arsenal on Sunday, Spurs went to the home of the holders seeking to give Luis Enrique’s team a fright once again after their narrow Super Cup defeat in August.
However, this highly talented PSG team also had a point to prove after a defeat to Bayern Munich on matchday four, and tested the water early on when long-range attempts from Fabián Ruiz and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia flew narrowly wide.
Thomas Frank’s side were holding their own though, and Richarlison gave them a 35th-minute lead at the end of a wonderful move. Lucas Bergvall linked up superbly with Archie Gray, whose cross from the left was headed back across goal by PSG loanee Randal Kolo Muani for the Brazilian to nod home from point-blank range.
The Parisians responded before half-time, as Quentin Ndjantou teed up Vitinha to rifle home a ferocious right-footed strike past Guglielmo Vicario, leaving this contest finely poised at the break.
Spurs would strike again just five minutes after the restart, with Kolo Muani replicating the likes of Kingsley Coman and Fernando Morientes in netting against his parent club in the UCL. Pedro Porro’s corner caused havoc in the PSG defence, as Willian Pacho headed Archie Gray’s effort away from the goalmouth into the path of the Frenchman to fire home.
That served as a huge wake-up call for Enrique’s men, who turned the match on its head with two goals in the space of seven minutes. Vitinha netted his second with a wonderful curling left-footed effort, before Frank’s men gifted them a third when João Neves caught Pape Matar Sarr dawdling on the ball and fed in Ruiz to apply a clinical finish.
Frank’s side had pushed the self-destruct button from that point onwards, being the architects of their own downfall once again with some more woeful defending. After failing to clear Lee Kang-in’s corner, Pacho was on hand to score their fourth, as Tottenham conceded four goals for a second consecutive game.
However, this breathless contest took yet another twist when Kolo Muani completed a brace with a fine right-footed finish. But just when Spurs thought they had hope of a comeback, Vitinha completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot after Romero was penalised for handall in the box.
This was another sobering night for Tottenham, who will know just how far they have to go in order to compete with Europe’s elite. This defensive capitulation will be very troubling for Frank, who has now seen his team concede 11 goals across their last three games across all competitions.
Meanwhile, PSG are now purring very nicely after claiming a seventh win in their last eight UCL fixtures, but ended the match with ten men when Lucas Hernandez was deservedly shown a straight red for elbowing Xavi Simons in stoppage time.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Vitinha (Paris Saint-Germain)
Click here to see all the stats of the match.
Post-match comments
Spurs' Archie Gray said Tottenham had plenty of learnings from their game against "relentless" PSG.
"We played against a top opponent tonight, they are probably the best team in Europe at the moment," he told TNT Sports. "There were some good moments we can take into Fulham.
"We scored some goals, there are things we can work on but they are a top, top team and there are moments you will suffer against them.
"They are the best team in Europe and they are relentless in every aspect of their game and they have that individual class. They are a top team and there are things we can learn from."
Tottenham boss Thomas Frank told TNT Sports: "I am very pleased with the performance. Today was much more the identity of the team, the bravery and aggressiveness of the team.
"There were lots of positives, the two strikers scoring three goals between them, the whole team performed really well. The performance was to get something out of the game but then you need to have the margins with you but we can't concede some of the goals we did.
"Vitinha is the best midfielder in the world. He will be the next Ballon d'Or winner."